annette has more on the growing demand for gas on the west coast, even at record prices. gas prices jumped more than 8 cents in one day. >> big, big problem. >> reporter: an all-him high for the year forcing some stations to close after running out of affordable fuel. other stations attracted long lines at the pump. >> we just got a shipment in this morning at a very, very inflated price. much higher than what we normally get our gas prices at, which is why our gas prices are

so high right now. >> reporter: the problem is, summer grade fuel is running out and analysts say the combination of a fire at a northern california refinery and a power outage at the exxon mobile plant in torrance have slowed production in the state. tonight the torrance refinery tells us operations will return to normal. >> it will help supply a lot. so, we think the high prices will start to calm down as we get through the to the weekend inand into next week. >> reporter: according to aaa, drivers are paying an extra 53 cents more per gallon than the rest of the country. and those 53 cents can add up. let's say on average the l.a. commuter drives about 300 miles a week. and your car gets about 20 miles a gallon. that means you're paying an extra $32 a month. >> be able to come to costco and get more groceries and, you know, $32 adds up. >> the national average for gas is about $3.79 a gallon.

the highest ever for this time of year. the especially high prices are unique to california because the state's strict pollution standards require a special gasoline blend. also, the available inventory of gas is at a ten-year low in the golden state. right now, a gallon of regular in washington is $3.91. higher than the national average. but that's still down from a penny, about a penny or so from last week. in fact, all local gas prices are down by a penny or two. filling up in maryland costs an average of $3.70 a gallon and in virginia, $3.60. breaking news in the trial of a soul survivor of a fiery crash in chevy chase. two misdemeanor charges. richardson and three friends took a stolen toyota on a joy ride back in march. the car crash under to a tree and burst into flames. everyone inside died, except for richardson. richardson was also charged with

theft and motor vehicle theft, but the jury cannot agree on those counts. he'll be sentenced in december. he faces a maximum of seven years in prison. the dyson corner area is undergoing a makeover and that includes a name change. the area is dropping the corner from its name. from now it's just tyson's. the name change is unofficial, but today business leaders presented their marketing plan for the area and it includes the name change. keith russell will have more on why some aren't sold on the idea. turning to the weather now, it feels like summer today, but brace yourself for a 25 degree drop in the mercury. >> let's go to storm team 4 meteorologist veronica johnson. >> the highs compared to where we are going to be on sunday, in fact, for some locations north and west, nearly a 30-degree drop. 31 degrees right now with mostly cloudy sky and looking back in the record our latest 80 degree day was on october 24th.

why am i telling you that? i think today is our last 80 degree day as we move into a very chilly pattern. its what's going to be bringing it, a weather front. rain stretched out towards arkansas and behind that front, temperatures currently in the 40s from chicago to minneapolis to kansas city, 46 to 48 degrees right now. that's the cold air headed this way. 79 now in cumberland and 81 in d.c. and 78 in pax river. throughout the whole area friend around franconia and all enjoying some very mild temperatures and coming up here, your forecast, a fantastic evening. couldn't be better. nice conditions here for early part of october. we do have some rain to talk about, though, with that cold air and i'll give you the details and the timing of that coming up in a couple of minutes.

president obama greeted a high-spirited crowd at george mason university in fairfax county this morning. if wednesday's debate was a shot in the arm for the romney campaign rather. today's jobs report could be the same for the president. for the first time since he took office a, unemployment has fallen below 8%. meanwhile, mitt romney was also campaigning in the common wealth where he down played the drop in the rate. danielle lee is on capitol hill with the latest from the battleground state. >> from president obama, this is proof that his policies are working, but for mitt romney, the unemployment rate now at 7.8% doesn't tell the whole story. at a rally a in virginia, a smiling president obama took full advantage of september's jobs report. >> more americans entered the work force, more people are getting jobs. >> reporter: the unemployment rate fell to 7.8%. marking the first time it's been

below 8% during his presidency. >> today's excuse is not an excuse to talk down the economy to score a few political point. >> reporter: political points is exactly what mitt romney was going for while talking to voters in virginia. >> this president calls his policies going forward. i call his policies forewarned. >> reporter: romney said the unemployment rate fell because people gave up. >> when i'm president of the united states, that, that unemployment rate is going to come down, not because people are giving up and dropping out of the workforce, but because we're creating more jobs. >> reporter: on social media, some conservatives accuse the obama administration of doctoring the jobs numbers. former general electric ceo jack welch wrote "unbelievable job numbers. the chicago guys will do anything. can't debate, so change the numbers." >> it's really ludicrous to hear that kind of statement. >> reporter: secretary of labor denies any political motivation saying the numbers are real. so, while romney launches tv ads promising to do better than

president obama -- >> i have a detailed plan to create 12 million new jobs. >> reporter: obama is celebrating this report. >> this country has come too far to turn back now. >> reporter: a benchmark, he says, proves america is on the right track. economists say the number of new jobs being created is still not enough to significantly lower the unemploit rate. the next jobs report comes out just four days before the election. reporting live on capitol hill, i'm danielle lee, news 4. health officials across the country are bracing for more cases of infection from that fungal meningitis outbreak. today the virginia department of health says about 630 people received tainted injections here. the patients have all been contacted. the health commissioner in maryland now says there's 29 cases in maryland and one death. the death toll nationwide remains at 5. in all cases, patients receive tainted steered steroid injecti

pharmacy that has closed. more trouble for american airlines. they had to cancel dozens of flights today so they could repair the loose seat problems. the airline pulled about 50 boeing 757s out of service to make the repairs. initially american say they centered on a clamp that keeps the seats attached to the floor. now, it says the issue is a combination of wear, poor design d possibly even spilled soda. american says most of the planes have been mixed and all the planes should be back in service tomorrow. a different kind of seat problem delayed an american airlines flight last night. the springs in the pilot's seat were missing. the flight from philadelphia to miami was delayed about 90 minutes while mechanics located two springs and installed them into the pilot's seat. a gas leak and a large propane tank, fire trucks and police cars lined the streets and families prepared to evacuate their home. this all started on an accident on glenbrook road around 8:30

this morning. why meernlsh crews believed this wasn't your typical gas leak. >> it was a simple mistake by a repairman. he rolled over a vent hose and that caused quite the reaction. >> initially the call came out as a 5,000 gallon underground propane tank, which calls for quite a bit. >> reporter: after an enormous response from fire and rescue, they determined the tank was only 1,000 gallons, but, still, a dangerous scene. >> our concern, obviously, was lower explosive limits in the area and propane hangs low. >> reporter: residents in three homes along the 7100 block of glenbrook road in bethesda were asked to voluntarily leave their home. by the time they got ready to leave, the propane company arrived on scene and put a wooden plug in the vent tube, stopping the leak. >> it wasn't a fire and combusted and had an explosion, that would be really serious.

>> we remain on the scone with a couple of units just to ensure that they're safe and make sure everything is stable in the area. >> reporter: montgomery county fire department said they put an elderly resident in the back of an ambulance as a precautionary measure and no injuries and everyone has returned back to their homes. a serious raccoon problem in one northern virginia neighborhood. people who live in the arlington condos say an invasion is forcing them to stay and somebody may be feeding the raccoons and that they've been around so long they no longer fear people. they are not only a nuisance, but also a danger. >> we can't sit outside on our balcony and really enjoy any part of the outside without them literally coming up on to the fence and into our space. one of other neighbors has cats and i think probably has been a couple events where a couple

cats have gone missing and tha happened over a couple years we've been living here. >> homeowners say the raccoons have been a problem for about two years. is it a confession or a bizarre pr move? coming up, chris brown releases a video saying he's caught in a love triang aal with rehannah and his recently dumped girlfriend. a mother sent to jail because her kids didn't spend enough time in school. how many days they missed and how many days she may spend behind bars. and we're finally hearing adele's new theme for james bond as the secret agent franchise turns 50 years old.

♪ the voice of grammy winning british star adele belting out the theme of the new james bond movie. sony pictures released the new anthem today. adele's first song since her best-selling album which swept and got six grammys earlier this

year. today marks to years since the first bond movie was released. "skyfall" will be in theaters next month. controversial singer chris brown has released a bizarre new video in which he drunkenly talks about his two ex-girlfriends. >> this is the video that he and director david allen posted online. it's called "the real chris brown." and in it brown seems to try to explain his relationships with re rihanna and his formal model girlfriend. there has been speculation about brown and rihanna rekindling their relationship. he's still on probation now for another two years of his assault of rihanna in 2009. mariah carey said nicki minaj threatened to shoot her on

a fight during "american idol." according to barbara walters, carey has hired extra security. walters didn't reach out to get her side of the story. it started over a contestant's talent. fox, which airs "american idol," has not commented. actress daryl hannah got herself arrested, again, while protesting construction of the controversial keystone excel pipeline. they blocked heavy equipment at a construction site about 1 00 miles east of dallas. they were charged with criminal trespassing and hannah was charged with resisting arrest. she may be best known for her roles in "splash" and "kill bill" and arrested last august in washington when involved in a similar protests. environmentalists are upset about plans for the pipeline that would transplant oil from canada to the gulf coast. snooki ditched the spray tan

and the fake lashes. the reality star and new mom posted this picture on instagram. she says this is how she looks without makeup. a glimpse init her new, low-key life after giving birth to her little baby boy. the twittersphere and blogs are blowing up over the picture. most of her fans say motherhood, apparently, agrees with her. "the real housewives of new york" wrapped up. this morning real house wife and businesswoman heather thompson dished with barbara harrison. she said she did the show to promote her brand and her philanthropic work. we asked if all the fighting and cadiness is real. >> they put us in scenarios that are organic. i always say if you and i were having lunch and the waiter spilled a pot of coffee on you. whatever the reaction would be. well, what happens is on the housewives the reaction is still genuine.

>> so thompson says she hasn't decided if she will return next season. the importance of organ donation. her son had a liver transplant at 6 months old. >> a staged spill, but an organic reaction. >> the reaction is real, but the whole setup is staged. >> makes sense, right? >> like an obstacle course? >> it's like a sporting show. >> it's tv. turning to the weather, we really enjoyed today, but oh, my goodness. >> they already know it's coming. >> i've been holding off on using the word cold as much as possible in my forecast for when it gets really a cold. i'm about ready to use it because this weekend it's about ready to get really cold on heading into next week. let's look outside and that gorgeous weather. a pretty sky, just a few clouds. this is a perfect day if you were off, right? and a great way to at least get the weekend started. so, take advantage of the first part of the weekend here.

81 degrees the temperature. the wind today out of the southwest that's been a mild wind for us and you can really see as i plot the temperatures on here where that warmth has been throughout the mid-atlantic area. atlan atlanta, memphis, 82. 80s right on up here to 76 in boston and you can see where the cold air is, too. it's back in the blue and it's in areas like st. louis, chicago and 48 and 49. and that chilly, cold air is going to be making its way south and then driving to the east. so, saturday it's here, ohio, western kentucky. sunday, it will arrive here into monday morning. we're talking about high temperatures taking almost a 30-degree drop into the mid-50s sunday as we go to sunday night and monday. overnight temperatures 30s. first time we've seen that also this season. at least as far as this overnight goes into tomorrow morning, it's going to be nice and drop to 65 to 70 degrees under clear sky by 11:00 p.m.

and midnight. i'm just expecting a few high clouds to come into the area tomorrow morning. i think we'll have a great start. but, tomorrow will be one of those days when the clouds rapidly increase. so, by 9:00 a.m., it's partly sunny sky by the time we get to noon, almost mostly cloudy and that front quickly making its way into our area with a best chance of showers along that front will be during the from 2:00 and maybe as late as 8:00 p.m. for sunday, we're talking about more rain here an area of low pressure that will be coming up from the south and almost riding that front. here we are sunday morning with some showers around the area. leesbering, winchester and overspreading the rain throughout sunday. not only is sunday looking like it is going to be chilly to cold, but also wet. and kind of gray and just awfully nasty. it's like, if i had to give it a grade, it would be a c minus, maybe even a d. it's a half, half weekend. split weekend for us. take advantage of saturday despite the showers. clear, nice and comfortable here

for the evening. 63 to 70 and temperatures drop off not too bad and then a great start for tomorrow morning. 54 to 62. again, rain chances come after noontime tomorrow. closer to fall weather for tomorrow. it's 72 to 78 degrees. and then there's a look at the early part of next week with highs still only in the 60s. so, we go from above average to way below average temperatures most of next week. we'll take a look at the seven-day forecast, the extended forecast coming up. >> all right. and unusual controversy over maternity leave. still ahead, yahoo!'s ceo is drawing fire because of how quickly she's going back to work. plus, a story that left many people angry. a woman passing a school bus by driving on the sidewalk. now, that driver is in court. imagine arriving at work and seeing this. the unusual place a gator made itself at home.

before tim burton made blockbusters, he made a little known short film about a boy who brings his dead dog back to life. >> now he is bringing an animated version of that movie to the big screen. >> even after death, the muscles responding to the electricity. >> science class sparks a bad idea in frankenwienie. a dog owner in tim burton's animation tale and when his pet pal sparky dies, victor takes his homework to the next level and brings the dog back to life. soon neighborhood bullies want in on the act, which may end up destroying the entire town. >> your mother and i are going to be taken. >> liam nessen's particular set of skills earn him "taken 2" he now needs her help. criminals lawyer to those he

took out vow revenge and capture the spy and his wife on vacation. he gives his daughter atatorial so they can thwart the bad guys, again. rated pg-13. nicole kidman is jail bait in queet the paperboy." she enlists the help of a journalist played by matthew mcconaughey. zac efron has a crush on kidman which may turn into a love or death triangle. it's rated r. an odd story. how a dog made a phone call that brought police to the oeper's house. how batman got arrested while he was fighting crime. and the secret to losing weight and keeping the weight off. the diets that are most likely to keep you slim and

welcome back to news 4 at 4:00. i'm pat lawson muse. >> i'm pat lawson. melissa myers is drawing criticism. >> she gave birth to her first child this week, but planning to go back to work very soon. as nbc's anne thompson reports, a new magazine cover is adding fuel to the fire. >> reporter: it is a great photo. marissa mieyer on the cover looking elegant, professional and trim. and to some moms on the internet. that's the problem because mayer just gave birth to her first child this week. >> of course, pregnancy dozen define her.

but, it is so much a part of her story. and it's so much, it's a big part of the reason why we look up to her. and i was surprised that they didn't show her, you know, pregnant and in a power suit. >> reporter: a fortune spokesperson confirms the magazine wanted to shoot mayer for the cover while she was pregnant but she declined. >> we're not all demi moore. >> reporter: huffington post columnicist says too much is being made of the cover. >> why should she pose nine months pregnant? she doesn't stand for all women. she doesn't have to represent us all the time. >> you will be getting google instant. >> reporter: as she rose through the ranks at google she never publicly shied away of setting a technology. >> i think women need role models and inspiration. >> reporter: talking about google's maternity leave policy. >> a baby of a googler should have their parent at home for six weeks or three months and it should be standard from that child's point of view and i think that means that,

ultimately, a really supportive environment for women, but it doesn't necessarily mean special environment. >> reporter: yahoo! hired mayer as a its ceo in july knowing she was pregnant. mayer plans to be back in the office within one or two weeks. that, too, is generating flap. >> we should be sending the message that women need more maternity leave and better benefits and need more time. they need a workplace that understands that this is a period of time that women need to be with a baby. >> reporter: all this criticism could make the corner office look real good to mayer. >> mommies are hard on each other. mommies are very tough. a lot of criticism probably for everything she does, while being a mommy. >> yahoo! did not respond to a request for comment from nbc news. >> all right, so, you ready for the big chill coming our way? >> no, i'm not. not yet, but i'm going to go

find the coat tonight. >> i think most people would say, richard and pat, that they're not ready. i'm not ready either. i think maybe the trees may be ready because look at that, great fall color out there right now. this is new river gorge, west virginia. it was taken today. they are about a week away from peak color. you can see the river running right on through there. with some colder nights ahead, boy, we have them coming up this weekend. starting this weekend, probably see our peak color around here the third week of october. maybe somewhere between the third and the eight week. we're in the 80s and certainly doesn't feel like fall. upper 70s from 81 degrees and by tomorrow morning, mid-50s. 61 degrees expected in d.c. and then for a high temperature tomorrow, well, not doing too bad, it will feel more like fall from 73 degrees to the north up to about 80 degrees down to the south. but, again, it's sunday, that's the day. i'll have more on that coming up and what the weekend has to do

with this little russian nesting doll. details coming up. >> can't wait to find out about that. veronica, thanks. an unusual arrest of a cape cruseder in michigan. mark wane williams dresses up as batman and his girlfriend dresses up as bat girl. williams was arrested for obstructing justice last weekend. suspicious actevty on the side of the road. turns out, he was in the middle of an act aive police search for a hit and run suspect. williams and his girlfriend still plan to continue with their costume crime fighting acta activi activities. their efforts are misunderstood. a utah man's dog is in the dog house. bruce gardner was at work when he got a call at his cell phone. the number calling him was his home land line number. no one was on the line but he heard all the scratching and other noises on the other end of the line which made him think that his house was being

burglarized. they rushed to the house, but found nothing out of place, except the phone. it was in the backyard with, mia, his 4-year-old lab. >> in the midst of chewing on it hit redialed and called the man's cell phone and then the dog buried the phone in the back yard in the garden. i heard of some pretty strange things, this ranks right up there with something i never heard happening before. >> needless to say he was relieved to find he wasn't being burglarized. he will try to make sure the phone stays in the house from now on. >> maybe dial the number. usually when you think of gators, you think of florida. the school or the everglades. but wildlife authorities had to rescue an alligator from a nursery this week. it showed up 500 feet from the nearest waterway. they found the gator sun bathing. the nursery owner said she's not sure how she got there and even after she got the call, she

wasn't expecting to find this. >> we don't know if it was dumped or if it actually walked up from the coastline or what. but it was certainly a surprise and when he told me it was an alligator, i was expecting a lizard. >> alligator sightings are not uncommon near the north carolina coast. this particular reptile was released safely back into the wild. a dramatic scene that plays out before your eyes. still ahead, an suv flies into a police cruiser. hard it believe, but no one was seriously hurt. a high-tech solution to an age-old problem. the body scanner that could

in news 4 your health, a new study finds free birth control leads to lower rates of abortion and teen pregnancy. this is according researchers at washington university school of medicine. they offered women free cont

contraceptives like birth control pills, patches or inplants. according to the study, teenage girls with free contraceptives had a birth rate at five times lower than the national average. this comes as women start to get access to contraception under president obama's healt care law. fad diets rarely last, but some can lead to long-term results. researchers divided a group of obese adults inlow calorie, low carb or mediterranean. they followed up four years later and all of them were thinner than before they began the diet and showed improved cholesterol levels. but weight lost was highest in the mediterranean and low-carb groups. the study is published by "the new england journal of medicine." video that left a lot of people shocked. a woman heads to court for passing a school bus by driving on the sidewalk and she has an incredible excuse. up next, veronica's back with more on this weekend's big

temperature swing. e. the middle class, who move our country forward. work hard. raise families. and keep america strong. but mitt romney's budget plan will hurt the middle class. raising taxes on the average family by up to $2000 dollars. while giving a tax break of $250,000 dollars to multi-millionaires. doesn't mitt romney understand, we can't rebuild america...by tearing down the middle class. priorities usa action is responsible for the content of this advertising.

veronica is here with treats. >> a forecast and treats. >> what can be better, right. >> i know. >> there's a russian bazaar taking place. off of 17th street. look at that, they sent the pastries, traditional, this is the poppy seed roll. you guys probably had it and then they got more pastries, but going on both saturday and sunday. take a look at the graphic because it's rain or shine and i'm expecting a a few showers. saturday and sunday. 70 on saturday and 55 on sunday. so, what day would you pick to go? >> i don't know. i think i'll go saturday. >> tomorrow. >> i'm going to slide the nesting dolls over to richard and see if he can put these together while i go do weather. also taking place this weekend is -- as we lose one of them.

taste of bethesda and then you have the fall festivals taking place and october fest, just a ton of things going on this weekend. all right, too brad iad it's no today. sunshine out there as you saw from our city cam and sunshine to our increase in clouds and know these clouds will push rapidly into the area. first thing tomorrow morning by 9:00 a.m., we're already partly cloudy across the area. by noontime, mostly cloudy and those showers, some scattered showers they'll push through rather quickly. best chance between 2:00 p.m. and about 8:00 p.m. tomorrow. a lot of those rain showers will hang out, though, for the afternoon across southeastern maryland and that's exactly where i think the spot is for sunday in terms of showers hanging out during the afternoon, too. so, for sunday, we're going to see, so the widespread rains come through and then by late in the day, southern maryland and areas down through southeastern virginia but sunday looks as though we're going to get quite a bit of rain in here. it's going to be a bet one through the day. about a quarter to maybe half

inch of rain and a gray day and, again, a mighty chilly day. we'll go from 78 degrees on saturday with just a 30% chance of showers to a 60% chance of showers all through the day on sunday. the high just 55. and then look at what happens as we go into monday. the first time we'll see highs in the 30s to around 41 degrees. we've got sunshine on tap first part of next week, but, still, we're camped out in the 60s for quite some time. say bye-bye to the 80s and how nice it felt today. >> all right, veronica, i did it. >> he did it. >> i got glitter on my hands now. i knew she was setting me up for something. >> yes, i was. >> but he won't be needing these. >> no, it's yours, pat. >> thanks. now, to a story for anyone who has struggled to find the perfect fit. it's a body scanner that helps take all the guess work out of shopping for clothes. erica gonzalez went to the fair oaks mall to put the new technology to the test.

>> reporter: you're shopping for clothes, try something on, it doesn't fit and you leave disappointed. >> i didn't really want to know my size. >> reporter: consider this a virtual fitting room. and, me, the guinea pig. meality is a body scanner at fair oaks mall. the first of its kind in our area. using radio frequency waves to tell you what size you are in each store in this mall. in about a a minute, sensors go to work. my biggest appreheng was having a man stand here and having him see my measurements. they get a printout and only this bar code has your measurements on it, so nobody sees it. what are you in the market mr. for? there is even a list of style trends. >> it's about the fit, not the size. because there is no size in standard. >> you hear that, ladies? it's about the fit, not the size. >> absolutely.

>> men have to try on clothes, too. >> is that pretty much your normal fit? >> reporter: because of her small frame, dorothy has the hardest time finding clothes. >> i've been walking around this mall for like two hours trying to find pants for work. >> reporter: not any more. >> just go right to them and get what i need. >> reporter: a fitting room without the mirrors or bright lights. in fair fax, erica, news 4. >> great idea. >> not very private, though, everyone can see you in there. >> well, you give a little and you get a little. it takes the guess work out and you don't have to keep trying on clothes. >> that's annoying. jailtime for playing hooky a. coming up, how many chi how mucr may spend. amazing no one was seriously injured in this. coming up on news 4 at 5:00,

a bizarre attack this morning in d.c. a woman says a man went after her dog and then after her. the dog and the suspect missing. pat collins is on the story a. also at 5:00, we're getting our first look at brand mew metra a cards that will hit the track soon. coming up at 6:00 a a 10-year-old girl was ready to give up her piggy bank to anyone who would return

take a look. an incredible accident in new hampshire. a the crash sends an suv on top of an a car. everyone involved in the accident only suffered minor amjuries. their children missed most of the school year without a valid excuse and now a mother will go to jail. she allowed her second and third graders to miss a total of 116

days of school. a judge sentenced her this week. 34-year-old mom pleaded guilty to violating the state's truancy law. the cool board said she had plenty of warning with the notes they sent home. an update on the woman who pased a school bus while driving on a sidewalk. why the mother says the decision was perfectly safe. search

remember the woman who got caught on video several times driving on a sidewalk to get around a stopped school bus, it was happening so often the bus driver in cleveland finally recorded her. katie reports the bus driver had her day in court, that was the bad driver had a day in court with a hard to believe defense offered by the bad driver's mother. >> reporter: a brazen maneuver caught on tape without even pausing. this driver pulls up on the curb and drives down the sidewalk to avoid waiting behind a school bus for handicapped children. >> she comes 7:30 every morning and goes around the school bus every a morning. >> reporter: not just goes around. she just doesn't illegally pason the right, but uses the pedestrian walk way as a detour.

this was all captured by the bus driver. mom lisa kelly saw it every day, too, as she waited for the bus to pick up her daughter. >> what if it was her kid in the wheelchair. >> reporter: she does it all the time, but they needed proof. the driver got out his cell phone camera and started rolling. getting all of the proof law enforcement needed. the next day, a cleveland police officer was ready and waiting. >> all right. she has been called. justice has been served. >> reporter: harden appeared in court on tuesday and pleaded not guilty to the charges of not stopping for a school bus and reckless driving. she tried to explain her daughter's actions by arguing the bus takes too long and what her daughter did was not all that dangerous. >> clearly the handicapped boy cannot run across the street. there's a factory across the street. >> reporter: look, again, across the street is not a factory, but

a day care center. but full of kids who could have easily been in the wrong place at the wrong time. >> if we had to evacuate the building, we would have to come through this door. this door here to come out of the building and if she's coming up on the sidewalk, well, then, there's the danger right there. >> the sidewalk driver declined an opportunity to talk with nbc news about this case. she's facing a $500 fine when she returns to court later this month. now, at 5:00, new jobless numbers adding a twist to the fight for the battleground state of virginia. tonight, new casess of meningitis in virginia linked to that deadly outbreak that spanned six states. the lone survivor of a deadly police chase. >> i don't worry about me. i want to find murray, that's all i care about. >> reporter: police are looking

for her attacker, but the victim has a very different plea. and thanks for joining us. on news 4 at 5:00, i'm wendy rieger. >> that gave president obama a very welcome talking point on the campaign trail. the unemployment rate in september, it dropped to 7.8%. it is the lowest since president obama took office. and hiring in july and august was better than first reported. but there are still more than 12 million americans out of work and critics, including mitt romney, say there's nothing to celebrate. speaking in fairfax, president obama called today's news another step forward. northern virginia bureau chief julie carry was there and joins us live in the newsroom. >> the president must have been very happy to change the subjenth from his sub par debate performance. helps mr. obama underscore his case that he is making progress that will continue if he's given a second term.